Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) Issues Earnings Results

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) announced its earnings results on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.37), FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a return on equity of 9.69% and a net margin of 12.85%.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of SQM stock opened at $80.60 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $84.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.97. Sociedad Quimica y Minera has a 12 month low of $29.36 and a 12 month high of $98.00. The company has a market capitalization of $23.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.00.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $1.0295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Sociedad Quimica y Minera’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 130.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on SQM. Zacks Research lowered shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Friday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sociedad Quimica y Minera currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $71.42.

Institutional Trading of Sociedad Quimica y Minera

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 26.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,905 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 616 shares during the period. FIL Ltd raised its stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 44,564 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,066,000 after buying an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 10.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 7,801 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $275,000 after buying an additional 749 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. Institutional investors own 12.41% of the company’s stock.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Company Profile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA (NYSE: SQM) is a leading global producer of specialty chemicals and minerals headquartered in Santiago, Chile. The company focuses on the extraction and processing of key inputs for the agricultural, industrial and high?tech sectors. Its core business activities include the mining of lithium, potassium and iodine, as well as the manufacture of value?added products derived from these raw materials.

SQM’s product portfolio spans lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide used in electric vehicle batteries and energy storage systems; potassium chloride and potassium nitrate fertilizers designed for precision agriculture; and iodine and its derivatives for pharmaceutical, food and electronics applications.